Vincent François Damphousse (born December 17, 1967) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

former

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and ski ...

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

player who played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) for eighteen seasons. He played

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics * Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentri ...

for the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

and

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...

, winning a Stanley Cup championship with Montreal in 1993. He was signed as an unrestricted free-agent by the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...

in 2004 during the off-season, but he never played with the team due to the lockout that canceled the 2004–05 season. Damphousse currently serves as a hockey analyst with the French-language television network RDS in his native

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

Playing career

Damphousse was drafted by the

6th overall in the

1986 NHL Entry Draft The 1986 NHL Entry Draft was the 24th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 21, 1986, at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. The National Hockey League (NHL) teams selected 252 players eligible for entry into professional ranks, in the revers ...

after a standout

junior hockey Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

career with the Laval Voisins/Titan. In

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

he was named MVP of the NHL All Star Game, being one of only four players (at that time) to ever score 4 goals in a single All-Star matchup. Damphousse spent five seasons in Toronto before being traded to the

in 1991 in a deal which sent future Hall of Famers

Grant Fuhr Grant Scott Fuhr (born September 28, 1962) is a Canadian former ice hockey goaltender in the National Hockey League and former goaltending coach for the Arizona Coyotes, who is best remembered for a decade of stellar play for the Edmonton Oilers i ...

and

Glenn Anderson Glenn Chris Anderson (born October 2, 1960) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, and St. Louis Blues. Ander ...

to Toronto, while Edmonton received Damphousse,

Peter Ing Peter A. Ing (born April 28, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played 74 games in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers, and Detroit Red Wings between 1989 and 1993. Biography I ...

, Luke Richardson, Scott Thornton, cash, and future considerations in return. Oilers' general manager Glen Sather said of Damphousse at that time that among French-Canadian players, only

Mario Lemieux Mario Lemieux (; ; born October 5, 1965) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played parts of 17 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins between 1984 and 2006, and he assumed ownership of the f ...

was more skilled offensively. On August 27, 1992, Damphousse was dealt to his hometown team, the

(with a 4th round pick in the 1993 NHL entry draft), in exchange for Shayne Corson, Brent Gilchrist and Vladimir Vujtek. His success with Montreal was immediate, as he recorded 97 points during the regular season and helped the team win the Stanley Cup in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

. He spent six more seasons in Montreal before being traded on March 23, 1999 to the

for a first, a second and a fifth round picks. He signed with the

on August 19, 2004, but he never played for them, as the

2004–05 NHL season The 2004–05 NHL season was the National Hockey League's 88th season of operation. The entire 1,230-game schedule, that was set to begin in October, was officially canceled on February 16, 2005 due to an unresolved lockout that began on Septe ...

was canceled due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. Damphousse was a member of the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) executive committee, serving as vice president under Trevor Linden.

Retirement

Damphousse announced his retirement on September 7, 2005. He currently lives in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

and serves as a hockey analyst with the French-language television network RDS.

Personal

On April 14, 2011, Damphousse was charged by

Montreal police Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

with six counts of assaulting his spouse after allegations made by his wife. The incidents were alleged to have occurred between January 2008 and early 2011. Damphousse categorically denied the allegations brought against him and also filed a complaint against his wife for assault. On June 19, 2013, the Crown dropped all charges against the ex-hockey player, though the Crown announced intentions to pursue its case against Allana Henderson, now Damphousse's ex-wife, for armed assault and theft under $5,000. Henderson was accused of committing assault with her vehicle and stealing a briefcase from her ex-husband. On January 14, 2015, the Crown dropped all charges against Henderson.

Awards

QMJHL The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The le ...

Second All-Star Team -

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 **Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal enter ...

* QMJHL Playoffs Most Assists (28) - 1986 * Selected to four NHL All-Star Games -

, 1992, 2001, 2002 * NHL All-Star Game MVP - 1991 * Stanley Cup champion -

(

)

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Damphousse, Vincent 1967 births Canadian ice hockey centres Edmonton Oilers players French Quebecers Ice hockey people from Montreal Laval Titan players Laval Voisins players Living people Montreal Canadiens players National Hockey League All-Stars National Hockey League first-round draft picks San Jose Sharks players Stanley Cup champions Toronto Maple Leafs draft picks Toronto Maple Leafs players